ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment

ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app, known for its popular app TikTok, is pulling the plug on its music streaming service, Resso, in India by the end of January. This move marks the Chinese tech giant’s latest withdrawal ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment from the second-largest internet market in the world.

The move reflects a broader crackdown on foreign companies, especially those from China, by Indian authorities. Experts said that India’s reputation as a “world factory” under Modi’s ”Make in India” initiative contrasts with its challenging business environment and lack of transparency in market regulations, making it a less favorable site for foreign companies.

“Unfortunately, owing to local market conditions, we can no longer continue to serve users of Resso in India. We have therefore decided to shut down Resso and its associated operations on January 31. Users will be offered a refund of their remaining subscription fees, ” a ByteDance spokesperson said.

Sources informed Money Control that the decision followed the Indian government’s order, leading to Resso’s removal from Google Play and the Apple App Store in mid-December 2023.

As of now, Resso remains operational, allowing music streaming on both its mobile app and desktop website. However, subscription purchases are no longer possible ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment on either platform.

A ByteDance spokesperson confirmed the closure of the publication, citing challenging local market conditions and announcing a refund for remaining subscription fees.

It claims to make team communication effortless without wasting time toggling between multiple programs and documents and offers a collaboration suite with prices starting at $12 per seat.

However, there is enough indication that ByteDance’s (global) strategy increasingly mirrors its approach in the US, where it “is trying to make itself look as “unimportant and safe as possible”, Curry said.

While India may contribute the highest number of users to Resso, the average revenue per user (ARPU) is lower than in Brazil, and converting Indian users to paid customers has proved difficult for other music streaming services. Resso notified users on the app and website that it was going to upgrade to a premium-only service from May 11, 2023.

At the time, ByteDance’s global head of music business development, Ole Obermann, said Resso’s move to a premium-only service would allow the development of a better user experience for music fans ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment while increasing opportunities for rights holders.

We are committed to building the world’s leading social music streaming platform and ensuring artists and music creators can rightly benefit from its growing success,” ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment Obermann was quoted as saying.

Ram Mishra, founder and MD of regional and independent music streaming app Damroo, said that music streaming generated Rs 2,200 crore in 2022 and of this, 87% was from digital space. He said the segment is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15% and is projected to touch Rs 3,300 crore by 2025.

Launched in March 2020 in India, Indonesia, and Brazil, Resso offered a mix of free and subscription-based music streaming. The premium service included features like ad-free listening, high-quality audio, offline song downloads, and unlimited skips. In May 2023, Resso transitioned to a premium-only model, intending to enhance user experience and support artists and rights holders.

The decision came after the government demanded that Apple and Google remove Resso from app stores.TikTok is also rolling out a separate music platform in five countries to compete with rivals like ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment Spotify. The move comes after the Indian government demanded in December that Apple and Google remove Resso from app stores.

Bytedance spokesperson words:

“Unfortunately, owing to local market conditions, we can no longer continue to serve users of Resso in India,” a ByteDance spokesperson told BI. “We have therefore decided to shut down Resso and its associated operations on January 31. Users will be offered a refund of their remaining subscription fees.”

India was the last market where Resso operated after the company sunset the music-subscription service in Brazil and Indonesia to focus on another streaming endeavor, Tik Tok Music, an app that blends some of the social features of TikTok with music streaming. TikTok Music, available in Australia, Mexico, and Singapore, ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment runs independently from Resso. The company has not announced plans to roll out TikTok Music in India.

TikTok has been banned in India since 2020 when the government boxed out dozens of China-affiliated apps amid a geopolitical scuffle with the country. Given that it has the same corporate owner as TikTok, ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment how Resso managed to dodge the ban for several years remains a mystery.

TikTok’s removal from India does not seem to have curtailed the app’s growth globally, as the company announced in September 2021 that it had crossed 1 billion users. While TikTok is now effectively shut out of one of the most populous markets for music streaming, the company still has plenty of room to expand its TikTok Music subscription service as it competes with incumbents like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music.

ByteDance is shutting down its music streaming app Resso in India at the end of this month after New Delhi ordered Apple and Google to pull the app in the country. The move comes amid the Chinese company’s plan to expand TikTok Music in various markets.

People familiar with the matter told TechCrunch that this decision comes ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment after the government instructed Google and Apple to take down Resso. ByteDance didn’t want to shut down the service due to operation constraints, the sources said.

The company confirmed the development and said that it doesn’t plan to launch TikTok Music in India.

The Resso app is currently taken off the Play Store and the App Store, as first noted by Money Control. The streaming service is still active for those who have the app, but it’s not possible to purchase a new subscription. Apple and Google didn’t immediately comment on the story.

According to app analytics firm data.ai, last year, Resso was downloaded more than 21 million times across iOS and Android in India and users spent $2.9 million on in-app purchases.

Until now, ByteDance has launched TikTok music in Australia, Singapore, and Mexico apart from Indonesia and Brazil.

India was the last active market for Resso, which was 1st launched in 2020. The streaming service was also operative in Indonesia and Brazil. India was the last market where Resso operated after the company sunsetted the music subscription service in Brazil and Indonesia to launch another streaming endeavor in those countries ByteDance to pull out music-streaming app from India amid worsening environment.  The app blends some of the social features of TikTok with music streaming. TikTok Music, also available in Australia, Mexico, and Singapore, runs independently from Resso. The company hasn’t announced plans to roll out TikTok Music in India.

TikTok’s removal from India doesn’t seem to have curtailed the app’s growth globally, as the company announced in September 2021 that it had crossed 1 billion users. While TikTok is now effectively shut out of one of the most populous markets for music streaming, the company still has plenty of room to expand its TikTok Music subscription service as it competes with incumbents like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music. 

An executive on the TikTok team told BI in December that the company aims to build new features to make artists’ lives easier.

“We want to maximize the amount of time artists have to do what artists do and make it as easy for them as possible,” said Paul Hourican, TikTok’s global head of music partnerships and programming.

• ByteDance’s music streaming app Resso has 15.2 million total installs on the App Store and Google Play, according to data from Sensor Tower.
• India is Resso’s largest market accounting for 65% of the app’s total installs while 34% are from Indonesia. 
• ByteDance continues to push its international business despite the pressure it has faced from the U.S. government which has threatened to ban TikTok if it doesn’t sell to an American company by Sept. 20. 

China’s ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, has quietly been racking up users for its music streaming service Resso, as it continues to expand its international presence despite ongoing U.S. pressure. 

• The app, which was formally released in India and Indonesia in March, now has 15.2 million total installs on the App Store and Google Play, according to data from Sensor Tower.
• From Aug. 1 to Aug. 30, the app reached about 3.6 million installs from first-time users around the world. This is 64% of the 2.2 million installs the app saw from July 1 to July 30.

India is Resso’s largest market and accounts for 65% of the app’s total installs, while 34% are from Indonesia. The remainder of the downloads came from Brazil, where it launched earlier this month

ByteDance continues to push for growth in its international business, despite the pressure it has faced from the U.S. government which has threatened to ban tik tok if it does not sell to an American Company. 

Resso is ByteDance’s rival to the likes of Spotify and Apple Music. ByteDance is going after fast-growing emerging markets. India was one of TikTok’s largest markets but the app was banned here due to some security issues. Tensions between India and China have also been rising after border clashes between the two nations’ troops in June. 

ByteDance is hoping Resso can help the company regain momentum in India after the TikTok ban. 

The speed of Resso’s installs appears to be comparable with its rival Spotify. In the five months after Spotify launched in India in February 2019, it reached 10.5 million installs compared to 9.8 million for Resso, according to Sensor Tower. 

In Indonesia, where Spotify launched in March 2016, 1.2 million installs were generated in the first five months. Resso has surpassed that with 5 million installs in the five months after it became available there.

In July, ByteDance announced it would pull back its new social music streaming service, TikTok Music, in Brazil and Indonesia, leading to the shutdown of Resso in both markets. Just two weeks later, TikTok Music was launched in closed beta in three additional countries

•  Mexico
• Australia
• Singapore

• TikTok’s owner is shuttering its music app Resso in India in response to government orders.

• The move comes as TikTok is rolling out a separate music app in five countries.
• TikTok was banned in India in 2020 amid a political dispute with China.